Poverty: the main cause of ill health in urban children.
Being poor is in itself a health hazard; worse, however, is being urban and poor. Much worse is being poor, urban, and a child. But worst of all is being a street child in an urban environment. This article will provide some background on the status of street children on a global basis, make linkages between street children and their frequent condition as working and exploited children, and detail the health impacts of the increasing poverty concentrated in poor urban slums and squatter settlements. Although some specific information on street children is provided, the social and economic factors that have a negative impact on the well-being of the broader population of poor, urban children are analyzed. The division between street children and their urban poor counterparts still living within some sort of family support system cannot be sharply defined. Programs and strategies that have been successful in improving the health and well-being of poor children in general and street children in particular are discussed.
de la Barra
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Programme Division, UNICEF, New York, NY 10017, USA. xdelabarra@unicef.org
D002648:Child; D002662:Child Health Services / Q000458:organization & administration*; D002669:Child Welfare; D018453:Homeless Youth; D006806:Human Rights; D006801:Humans; D011203:Poverty; D012940:Social Problems; D014480:United Nations; D014504:Urban Health